Defense News

Defense News is a specialist publication covering United States and international defence procurement, military programmes, and defence policy. It is owned by Sightline Media Group, a Washington DC-based media company that also publishes Army Times, Navy Times, Air Force Times, Marine Corps Times, and Federal Times. Sightline Media Group acquired the titles from Gannett Company in 2016, ending a three-decade period in which the publications sat within a major newspaper conglomerate. Defense News first published in 1986 and has operated a continuous weekly print edition alongside digital coverage. In the drones and autonomous systems domain, Defense News reported on 28 April 2026 on the Joint Laser Weapon System (JLWS), providing the primary public sourcing on the $675.93 million Army-Navy programme and identifying Lockheed Martin as the likely prime contractor .

The publication's editorial focus centres on Pentagon acquisition policy, major defence programme milestones, congressional authorisation and appropriations activity, and international arms sales. Its Washington bureau has direct access to Pentagon briefing cycles, making it a primary source for programme office announcements that have not yet reached broader news outlets. Defense News is frequently cited alongside Jane's Defence Weekly and Aviation Week and Space Technology as a tier-one specialist trade publication; the three together form the standard citation set for unclassified programme funding figures. Its readership includes defence industry executives, congressional staffers, and acquisition professionals for whom the publication functions as a primary trade journal rather than a general-interest outlet.

Sightline Media Group's ownership model operates the publications as subscription and advertising titles serving defence industry professionals. Defense News content is gated behind a paid subscription for full access, though newsletters and selected articles circulate widely in government and industry channels. The publication holds permanent press credentials at the Pentagon and covers all major programme reviews, contract award announcements, and budget-request testimony sessions before HASC and SASC.